Trade Union Law now available in English

The bilingual publication of the 2012 Law on Trade Unions was launched on 23 July in Hanoi by the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL). The translation of the law into English, as well as the amendment process of the law, was supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Viet Nam.

News |
23 July 2013

HANOI (ILO News) – The bilingual publication of the 2012 Law on Trade Unions was launched on 23 July in Hanoi by the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL). The translation of the law into English, as well as the amendment process of the law, was supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Viet Nam.

“This is a gift for the upcoming eleventh Viet Nam Trade Unions Congress,” said VGCL Vice President Mai Duc Chinh. “It significantly contributes to the 2012-16 Country Decent Work Programme.”

After the launch, VGCL planned to roll out trainings of the amended Law on Trade Unions, which came into effect at the start of 2013, to employers and trade union representatives at companies, including foreign-invested enterprises across Viet Nam later this year.

The new law has important new provisions, including mandatory social dialogue mechanism at workplaces, stronger role of collective bargaining, rights of upper-level trade unions to represent workers, improved rights of workers to establish unions and engage in trade union activities, and strengthened role of the Government in promoting collective bargaining and engaging in dispute settlement.

According to ILO Viet Nam Country Director Gyorgy Sziraczki, law enforcement is “a bigger challenge than law making”.

“This in turn requires time, consensus, resources and hard work,” he said.